Karadaiyan Nombu Special!

I am officially turning into an Iyer maami. Yes, funny though but ironically I don't mind the humor this time. All along  my childhood and teenage years I used to really wonder why my mother takes the pain of getting up in the morning, dressing up in a madisaar (nine yard saree), making vellam/uppu adais and nombu saradu. Then going to work and hitting a dozen temples in evening during rush hour. I used to ask,"why take so much of pains during a working day? Get the adais from the shop and go to the temples during weekends". My mom would laugh and say," I am doing it because it gives me pleasure and you don't get these adais in a shop".

But I totally understand and appreciate her now.  Karadayain Nombu is the southern version of Karava Chauth. We invoke the blessing of God and pray for a long fruitful lives for our respective husbands. It is celebrated on the first day of Phalguni Masam (month), which was yesterday. We remember the sati (pious wife) savithri for bringing back her husband back from God Yama (God of death). All though the husbands don't seem to be doing anything for our longevity, the tradition continues. I love the adais and the tradition. Hehe...

I have been doing this nombu for 3 years now. Past two years my mother has been telling me not to make the adais as it isn't that easy to get it right until you see someone making them. Past two years I have been making kesari or payasam for neivethiyam. But this time I surprised her by making them and making them right. Thank you Srirangam maama and maami for the recipe. Avi was surprised too.

These are the things I did:-

1. Put kolam (rangoli) and light the lamp.
2. Light incense and keep the manjal saradu next to God.
3. Dress to kill in madisaar.
4. Keep the adais and fresh vennai (butter) for neivethiyam.
5. Say this, "urugatha vennaiyum, oru adai yum naan nuuthen, oru kaalum yen kanavan, ennai piriyamal irukka vendum"!!! which means, Non-melted butter, an adai, I place in front of you, at anytime my husband should not be parted from me.
6. Do namaskaram to Avi.
7. Gobble up the adais after giving them to Avi.

Vadi-Subz Bahar

Last month has been quite busy. However, I enjoyed every bit of it. Having amma gone back to India has not necessarily drowned me with work but it did test my organizing skills and my time management. Well, I am patting my back on what a good job I have done. I have kept the home as clean as it was before (as I like it to be); I have baked cakes and cupcakes; I have made fondant flowers; I have taken good care of myself- Shopped, pampered my hair with henna and done my evening prayers. I was going to gym but that ceased past a week as I sprained my back.  I promise to get back on my crochet and reading. I am far behind my schedule on both of them. Hence, having a baby hasn't taken my life away from me. My craziness, avocations, narcissism and vanity is pretty intact! Avi and myself had decided that our parenting mantra is not going to be "baby is the only world we know" one. We decided we will give/ teach our son love, kindness, survival instincts, inculcating tastes in art and music, having proper decorum, and most importantly,giving him a safe environment.  We will still grow on the individual that we are and still have our share of fun. Thanks to Avi for reminding me the above every time I get over obsessive about Amo.

Amo is right now teething and loves his teething ring. He is try to sit and move pushing his knees; Don't know which one will be achieved first.  Amo has started to read his Elmo sing along book and he is immersed in them every morning after his breakfast.

How this awesome vegetable laden dish came along in my mind? I happened to open my refrigerator on Friday and happened to see a lot of left over vegetables that needed to to be used before they spoil. I hate to let vegetables spoil and always make sure they are used up fresh.The dish is rich, juicy and full of flavors. It  has bountiful of vegetables in it. It does take time to make but it was yum and so totally worth it.

Recipe Copyright: Preeti Kashyap

Ingredients:-

2 cups of mix vegetables diced (I used cauliflower,  carrots, okra)
1 cup of spinach leaves finely chopped
2 medium sized onions (1 diced and 1 chopped)
4-5 tomatoes (2 diced and 3 chopped finely)
1 cup of cooked soya vadi (boiled and cleaned)
2 tsp of roasted jeera powder
1tsp of jeera
4 peppercorns
2 cloves
2 tsp of gram masala
1 tsp of amchur
1 tsp of coriander powder
1 tsp of red chili powder
3 green chilies
2 tsp of fresh ginger garlic paste
1 inch cinnamon
1 inch ginger
2 pods of garlic
pinch of turmeric
pinch of sugar
4 tbl spns of oil
salt to taste

Method:-

Stage 1:-
Heat 1 tbl spns of oil in a pan. Add 1 tsp of ginger-garlic paste. Fry for few seconds
Mix in the diced 2 cups of mix veggies. Add salt and turmeric.
Sprinkle some water and cooked closed until the veggies are cooked. Every 2 mins gently toss the vegetables so that they do not burn.
Keep aside.

Stage2:-
Heat 1 tbl spns of oil.
Fry the cinnamon, jeera, cloves, peppercorns, ginger, garlic,green chilies, diced onions and 2 tomatoes.
Fry them until they have soften and onions are transparent.
Let them cool and puree them. Keep aside.

Stage3:-
Heat 2 tbl spns of oil.
Add the chopped onions. Fry until they have turned golden brown.
Add the chopped spinach.Fry them for a min until they turn tender.
Add the chopped tomatoes, jeera powder, garam masala, amchur, coriander powder, sugar and salt.
Add the puree and vadi. Cook well until the oil separates.
Cook until the vadi absorbs all the flavors and is juicy.
Layer the cooked veggies on top of the vadi gravy and close the handi (pan). Simmer for 1 min (dum cooking).
Serve hot with naan/roti.

Sree Annapurna's Onion Dosa and Red Garlic Chutney

This is a peculiar dosa. Not many are fond of it and not many menus contain it? Well, how many people would want to walk away from a restaurant smelling like an overload of onions. Can the smell be really overhauled with a spoonful of minty mouth freshener given at the end? Complementary it might be, but mouth freshers are not supposed to be taken a ladle full.  Some might differ with the above opinion. They would say the sweetness of onion in medley with the hot red chili-garlic chutney is to die for.

Onion Dosa- Crispy dosa smeared with red chutney might and stuffed (almost like a vegetarian foie gras) with sauteed red onions. To heck with the onion odor, your palate will thank you for it.

Onion dosa brings back a lot of memories. Every Sunday my appa would take amma and myself to Sree Annapurna restaurant (was a popular vegetarian eat out)  in Coimbatore, India. I would dress up promptly with my matching hairband and sandals to have our family outing.  Every time I would order this on the menu and not able to finish it. It was huge with loads of onions, so one dosa would be shared by three of us. Ice-creams from Arun ice-cream would follow to compensate for that ladle full of mouth freshener needed to dampen the onion odor. I would still have some odor on the way to home; with some sweet memories of togetherness to treasure. As I brushed my teeth before I could go to bed, I would always check again for the onion smell and smile at the mirror with satisfaction on my brushing skills.

Avi loved the red chutney!!! And this dosa will appear quite frequently from now on on the dinner table. We overate the dosa...gee:)

Ingredients:-
Dosa batter needed to make 6 dosas
2 large onions chopped finely
chopped coriander leaves for garnishing
salt to taste
oil for sauteeing
butter/ghee/oil for making the dosa (about 2 tsp for each dosa)

Red Chutney:- (My recipe. )
5-6 red chilli
1 medium sized tomato
5-6 curry  leaves
2-3 large pods of garlic
2 tbl spns of bengal gram
pinch of asafoetida
pinch of sugar
salt to taste

Method:-
Heat 2 tbl spns of oil in a cast iron pan.
Saute the chopped onions, salt and coriander leaves until transparent. Keep aside.
In the same pan, saute the bengal gram, asafoetida, curry leaves and red chilies. Grind it with rest of the ingredients. Keep aside the paste.
Spread the dosa and apply oil. Wait for the dosa to start getting light brown.
Spread a layer of chutney using a spoon. On the chutney, spread a layer of onions (spread as much as you desire).
Fold the dosa once crisp and serve immediately as onions make the dosa soft very soon.
Serve with some coconut chutney and sambar.

I just made a spring cake. It was a combination of a choco-coffee layer, an orange cake layer, vanilla butter cream and decorated with fondant.

Crispy Sweet n Sour Achari Tofu

I am cooking and cooking big time recently. Two reasons, firstly, the winter has tied me down at home and that deflects all my creative energy towards cooking. Secondly, my new Lodge Cast iron pan and skillet. I just can't stop cooking in them. They make the food tastier and healthier. Plus, they are so easy to maintain and are keeps for life. Believe me, when my grandmother asked me to take some of her 40 year old cast iron pans, I laughed saying that they looked charred and old. But know for sure I know, they are as good as gold.

My weight loss is going sooo slow and I am slacking. I need motivation and pepping up. Is any one interested in a month's food buddy weigh loss help program? I thought it would be great to keep each other motivated. Writing posts on low fat healthy recipes, exercise plans and personal tip of toning and keeping one self healthy. I really need the help and would love it if you guys would join. Leave a comment with your email and I will send you guys a mail explaining what I have in mind.

Now to the recipe, thanks to Sharmi for her inspiration through her paneer achari tikka post. I did use the masala in her post but make a completely different dish with a week old tofu in the refrigerate.

Ingredients:-
4 tofu slabs cut into triangles
1/4 cup of basmati rice
1/4 cup of maida/APF

To grind:-
1/4 cup of mint and coriander leaves
1 shallot
2-3 green chillies
1 garlic pod
1 tsp tamarind
1 tbspn of panch puran masala
Salt to taste

Sweet and sour sauce made using this recipe

Method:-
Grind the ingredients to make it a sauce consistency paste.
Marinate the tofu triangles for about an hour in the paste.
Grind the rice to a powder and keep aside.
Heat the oil in a cast iron skillet.
Roll the tofu in maida and then roll again in the ground rice.
Fry the tofu on all sides until golden brown and crisp. (you can serve these as  appetizers with hot sauce)
Pour the sweet and sour sauce on the tofu and serve.

Crochet is going on well. I am making my first afghan and super excited about it. It kinda beats my stress level down and I am in peace once again. I loved the below book that I am reading for Amo, he loves it too. The book subtly teaches kids how the whole family works together in making a perfect home and how considerate they are towards each other.  I love the way it rhymes and seems so traditional. Amo simply loves the peek-a-boo holes. He is so thrilled to put his wrist through it and wonder.

I am going eggless, but an eggy breakfast for my family

I am going eggless for sometime now and I hope it is only for a lil while. Until then, I am resisting my temptation and still making some awesome eggs for breakfast on Saturdays for Avi to give him a break from his 6 week cereal breakfast.

Egg is a wonderful source of protein and more than that, such a wonderfully subtle ingredient in the mornings that you can easily manipulate them into a thousand variety of dishes and that too most of them can be made in a jiffy.  Yes, that's the wonderful egg for you.

Well, all though I am in an egg abstinence mode, I just can't restrain myself from making them for breakfast for Avi just to see him to roll and then close his eyes while chewing in slow motion and then saying, "hmmm...."

I love the an egg-celery sandwich. It was healthy, quick and totally yumm....

Traditionally the recipe involves mayo, but I add yogurt based salad dressing or light mayo.

Egg-Celery Sandwich

 Serves-1-2 people
Makes:- 2 sandwiches

Ingredients:
2 hard boiled eggs
1 tbspn of finely chopped celery
pinch of pepper
4 bread slices
Light yogurt based mayo (healthier than mayo)
pinch of salt (if needed-optional)
coriander or lettuce to dress the sandwich.
Butter for the bread- (optional-I avoided it as mayo is enough to make the sandwich greasy)

Method:-
Butter the 2 bread slices (can avoid it).
Dice the boiled egg into 1/2 inch pieces. Take the yolk pieces and mix well with the mayo/mayo substitute. Make sure the yolk totally breaks down so that you can hardly see the yolk chunks.
Now add in the white pieces, chopped celery, pepper and salt.
Add the lettuce or coriander on the bread. Layer the mixture on a slice of bread and seal the sandwich with the other slice of bread.
Enjoy!

Life: Just like that! with Vazhakkai Bajji

January has been a month of seasons of me; Couple of good lows (being positive) and loads of highs. It started with a sugar high new year, went into an introspective mode with loads of crochet projects (yes, hooking yarn feeds my soul), met with friends a couple of times, had amma's send off party, a nasty salesman and now, its time for amma to leave. There is a dichotomy between sad and fun. Guess this is life; Life: just like that.

Crocheting is going strong. Made loads of season gifts and all were loved by the respective recipients. I have started to organize and plan this coming year carefully (yes, full of events and travel are on charts). Life seems less confounding and I have become an avid crocheter! I was at the brink of quiting it for sometime and Avi goes, " You kidding me right? It does universal good". Watever that meant! haha...I know what that means. He doesn't have to work on buying gifts, going to stores and shopping for winter wear. Men never grow up!

 A shell cap : One day project

On the baby front, It has been just 3 months and I feel I have been a mom for ever. I don't know how not to be a mom any more. I tell you, kids do magic...for real!

 Amma with kids at the party (Yes, Amo wore jeans)

Amma's farewell was so eventful. We had loads of laughter, discussions and more. The kids were having fun, food was great and amma was full of smiles!I had made peas pulav, veggie kurma, dal makhani, thair semia and amma's fav: Pineapple Gateaux. Although, the cake wasn't as soft I expected it to be but the cream and flavors were spot on!

My cakes have been doing good during the holiday season. I am getting better, but my friends say I am getting good.*Blush*...I am motivated. The more people I met, the more cakes I baked :P. Guess, it goes hand in hand.

Pineapple Gateaux

I am  a very shopping friendly person and I believe that when you want to refuse a customer, do refuse but be polite. We went to staples to get a gift and the manager was so rude. Guess, he was  having a bad bday. Jeez, we complained to the head office and they were sorry. Well, they lost a customer for sure!

Why does amma have to leave??? I am so used to her now being at home and discussing everyday nothings....guess, goodbyes are ineluctable. Life: Just like that!

 On a sunny winter day: I was  so tempted to be fare foot. This winter was good

Today's recipe: Plantain/ vazhakkai Bajji

Ingredients:
2 plantains thinly sliced (long)
water to make the batter
Oil to deep fry

For the batter:
1 cup of besan/chickpea flour
3 tbspns of rice flour
1-2 tsp chilli powder (as desired)
pinch of cumin powder (optional)
pinch of hing/asafoetida
pinch of baking soda
salt to taste

Method:-
Heat the oil at medium flame.
Slice the plantain lengthwise into thin slices.
Mix the batter ingredients together and add water slowly to make a batter that is in between too loose (pouring consistency) and too tight (dropping consistency).
Dip each slice into the batter and make sure they are evenly coated. Slide them into the oil slowly. Test with one slice to increase or decrease the oil heat accordingly.
Fry until golden brown on both sides and crisp to bite. If the plantain doesn't seem to be cooked inside, try reducing the heat and frying for longer.
Serve with coconut chutney or ketchup and a hot cuppa tea!

P.S: Yes, I still need to update some pictures of mine (from the sweets and dessert section)...work in process :P

Best 2 Copycat Recipes!

Cheese cake factory's avocado rolls

Fettuccine with spaghetti sauce? Something I just tried for fun and came out great. I had to try the spaghetti sauce recipe that I saw in the No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain show. I wanted a lovely appetizer to go with it and it had to be Cheese cake factory's avocado rolls. I googled for a copycat recipe and to my surprise, it did come out just like the original one. My mom who is not very fond of  Italian cuisine, surprisingly loved it. This meal was a big change after all the south Indian food we have been having past a week. The cashew dip turned out so very close to the one at the restaurant. I was simply thrilled. The only mistake I did was to grind a tad bit more of the coriander leaves than need, hence the green hue instead of the transparent white-ish color.

These two are the best copycat recipes that did not disappoint me. They were simply spot on!

Tony Bourdain's Spaghetti Sauce

The spaghetti sauce was simply awesome. Avi hates anything that is close to marinara and he said this was the best tomato based sauce ever! Thanks to Anthony for the lovely recipe and a wonderful show. I even love his new show, The layovers.  One should see to learn what one can do during a layover at airports. I loved the Singapore, Changi airport episode. Being from Singapore, I was overwhelmed with a lot of nostalgia.Singapore is one country where in you can see most of the place in a day's time and eat awesome food.

Here is the best spaghetti sauce recipe from Tony Bourdain